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Fave part about cooking?<\/strong> Seven tips for getting kids to eat healthier:<\/strong> Three nutricious lunchbox combinations:<\/strong> Azraa and Waven\u2019s famous coconut prawn curry<\/strong> Text: ALANICKA LOTRIET. \u2022 Photographer: CATHY PINNOCK, NICOLA JANSEN VAN VUUREN.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Like peanut butter and jam, mac and cheese, burgers and fries … Azraa and Waven Harper are just better together. After almost a decade of marriage, high school sweethearts and total food nerds Azraa and Waven Harper took their relationship to a whole new level. They entered a reality culinary show for home cooks. With […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":121,"featured_media":15653,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[38,40,20],"tags":[5618,5616,5620,1102,3922,5622,5624,5619,5625,455,5623,1011,5615,5614,543,5621,5617,5626],"class_list":{"0":"post-15651","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-food-wine","8":"category-people","9":"category-personalities","10":"tag-azraa-and-waven","11":"tag-azraa-harper","12":"tag-coconut-prawn-curry","13":"tag-competition","14":"tag-couple","15":"tag-eat","16":"tag-enjoy","17":"tag-enter","18":"tag-flavour","19":"tag-get-it","20":"tag-live","21":"tag-love","22":"tag-mkr","23":"tag-my-kitchen-rules","24":"tag-recipe","25":"tag-share","26":"tag-waven-harper","27":"tag-west"},"yoast_head":"\n
\nAzraa: The fact that it\u2019s therapeutic. I love creating things and I do that through food.
\nWaven: The eating part, haha.
\nCooking or baking?<\/strong>
\nAzraa: Baking is more fun. It\u2019s what I do for a living and I absolutely love it.
\nWaven: Baking is hard for me and I don\u2019t like to measure. I enjoy cooking because you can make anything with your own twist.
\nYour cooking style?<\/strong>
\nAzraa: I cook with my heart and my intuition. I\u2019ve been cooking since I was 12, so I\u2019ve had a lot of practice. I really like trying new dishes.
\nWaven: I just keep it traditional. Most of the times, I stick to the basics and what I\u2019m comfortable with.
\nWho\u2019s got the most annoying habits when it comes to cooking?<\/strong>
\nAzraa: Definitely me. Let\u2019s just say it looks like the kitchen exploded when I\u2019m done cooking.
\nWaven: Yes, I agree. Definitely Azraa. And I have to clean up after her because I don\u2019t like a messy kitchen.
\nWhat is your go-to midweek meal?<\/strong>
\nAzraa: A traditional flavour-packed chicken curry and rice.
\nWaven: Grilled chicken breasts, broccoli and rice.
\nIf you could cook with anyone, who would it be?<\/strong>
\nAzraa: Yolanda Gamp – a self-taught baker and cake designer from Canada. I\u2019d really like to bake with her.
\nWaven: David Higgs! After meeting him and interacting with him, I found that he is such a genuine person with so much knowledge.
\nKitchen tools you can\u2019t go without?<\/strong>
\nAzraa: Definitely my Kenwood mixers.
\nWaven: A good set of knives.
\nYour signature dish?<\/strong>
\nDefinitely our coconut prawn curry. We always get asked by family and friends to make it for them. It\u2019s also the dish we\u2019re most known for on MKR SA.
\nTop 3 cooking tips?<\/strong>
\n\u2022 Keep tasting as you cook.
\n\u2022 There\u2019s no right or wrong when it comes to cooking, as long as it tastes good.
\n\u2022 Always cook with love.<\/p>\n
\nWe all want our little ones to follow a nutritious diet. But, being the parents of two busy boys, Azraa and Waven know it\u2019s easier said than done. They share a few of their expert tips on how to get kids to eat (even just a little bit more) healthy.
\nDisguise the veggies \u2013 Incorporate the veggies in meals such as stews and spicy rice.
\nDon\u2019t make a big deal out of it \u2013 Try to normalise veggies by incorporating it in every meal.
\nGive kids a \u2018behind-the-scenes\u2019 look at food – Kids are more likely to give healthy food a taste if they\u2019re already interested and exposed to it. If possible, take them to a farm or local farmer\u2019s market to pique their interest.
\nOffer choices – The choice between apple slices and celery with peanut butter may not seem like much, but it gives kids the autonomy they crave, while still keeping you in control of nutrition.
\nSnack smarter – Keep snack portion sizes for children small. Additionally, you\u2019ll want to try to avoid ruining their appetite for dinner by providing snacks too close to dinner.
\nInclude your kids while cooking – Kids are more likely to give a new food a try if they have had a hand in making it.
\nLead by example – Children are hugely influenced by their environment and so a parent\u2019s choice in nutrition is especially important.<\/p>\n
\nLunchbox 1: Whole wheat bread with ham, cheese and cucumber, apple slices, peanuts, yoghurt and bottled water.
\nLunchbox 2: Air-fried chicken nuggets with mayo dipping sauce, cheese triangles, biltong, sliced strawberries and bottled water.
\nLunchbox 3: Whole wheat bread with peanut butter and strawberry jam, mini blueberry muffins, one banana, popcorn and bottled water.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/getitmagazine.co.za\/joburg-west\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/21\/2023\/03\/Small-1-400x283.jpg\")
\nIf you\u2019re a fan of spicy of seafood, you\u2019ll definitely want to try Azraa and Waven\u2019s signature dish. It\u2019s absolutely to die for! Serves 5
\nYou\u2019ll need:
\n1kg deveined prawns (with shell on); 2 tablespoons Kashmiri curry powder; 1 tablespoon turmeric; 1 tablespoon garam masala; 2 teaspoons cumin seeds; 2 cardamom pods; 2 cinnamon sticks; 1 bunch coriander; 2 cans coconut cream; 1 cup butter; 15 jam tomatoes; 1 large onion; 5 cloves garlic (minced); 2 teaspoons grated ginger; 2 green chillies; 3 teaspoons sugar; 1 – 2 teaspoons salt; 3 tablespoons oil
\nTo make:
\nFinely chop the onions and grate or blend the tomatoes.
\nHeat oil in a large pot over medium-high heat.
\nAdd onions and braise them.
\nAdd cumin seeds, cardamom pods and cinnamon sticks. Braise with the onions until golden brown.
\nAdd all dry spices, garlic and ginger and braise until spices are cooked.
\nAdd grated or blended tomatoes and sugar, and cook until it turns into a tomato gravy.
\nRoughly chop coriander and chillies and add them to the tomato gravy. Let the mixture simmer.
\nRemove prawn heads and set aside.
\nIn a separate pot, add butter and prawn heads and fry until prawn heads turn pink.
\nAdd in the coconut cream to infuse the prawn flavour. Once prawn heads have turned pink, strain the coconut cream mixer and set aside, remove prawn shells and discard.
\nAdd the coconut cream mixture back to the separate pot and add the prawns. Cook in the coconut cream just until prawns turn pink and curl up.
\nRemove from heat and add the coconut prawn mixture into the tomato curry.
\nCook for a further 5-10minutes and serve with rice or roti. Enjoy!
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